With regards to the post below about the 6.5-06 and 6.5-284. A friend of mine is building a rifle to use a necked 308 case down to 6.5mm. He heaps praise about the 6.5mm bullet about how it is so loooong and so many different weights of bullets available, and ballistic coeficients and all those good things.
I am putting together plans for a simple 7mm-08. I am feeling like my cartidge is going to be substandard compared to this 6.5 job.

Is the 6.5-08 a recognized wildcat?

Ever heard of the 260Rem? That's what she is..............

For anything bigger than Antelope the 7-08 would be better than a .260 rem. Don't be worried to pick what you want.

I think you'll actually find a better selection of 7mm bullets in the US.

There's nothing magic about any particular caliber, everything is a trade off. Decide what you want to do and match the cartridge accordingly.

Dane,

The wildcat used to be called the .263 Express, and A-Square registered it with SAAMI so Remington called their version the .260 Rem. It is a good target cartridge.

Ask your friend what twist his barrel will have. He won't be shooting all those long bullets if he uses the US standard 9" twist; you need the European twist of 7.87" and a long throat to handle the longest bullets.

Then tell your friend that your .284" bullet has more cross-sectional area than his .263", and it will let the blood out and the cold air in faster -- as Elmer used to say.

The 7-08 is a great hunting cartridge...jim dodd

------------------
"if you are to busy to
hunt, you are too busy."

I honestly doubt there's much difference between the 7-08 and 260... either is a fine deer cartridge. For bigger stuff I'd prefer something bigger than either. For deer sized game flip a coin. As a "dual-purpose" deer/varmint cartridge the 260 (aka 6.5-08) is probably the best bet of the two. I've about decided to build a 260 on a stainless Win 70 SA... I plan to have Pac-Nor re-barrel with a 23" Winchester fwt. contour with a Leupold 3x9 compact on top... dandy for coyotes, deer and pronghorn.

My 2 cents,

Brad Amundson

Your friend who is building the 6.5-08(.260) should have his action and magazine fitted to handle cartridges that are nearly 3.0 inches OAL or he will be spinning his wheels when trying the 160 grain spitzers. This being a custom gun, it should be made right to maximise cartridge versatillity.

Everyone has the inside track to ballistic perfection. One of the reasons they preach so long and loud is they want re-assurance that they are doing the right thing. Stick with your 7-08 (damn I love that cartridge) and y'all will have something to argue about over the winter. I think it'll kinda be like the .243 vs 6mm debate.